"I was not expecting to see you at home, happy birthday "
"Mom you did not call before coming, what if I was not home?"
I replied and collected the cake from her already tired hands, she has never forgotten my birthday for any reason. May be is because am her only son and since my dad passed away I have been the father figure in the family. "Thank you for the cake mom, you are the best" I gave her a warm hug after dropping the cake on the dining table just to make her feel special.
I was 11 years old when my father, U.S. Army Col. Corey Alfred Herman, was killed in Afghanistan. A "forever war" like Afghanistan leaves families like mine waiting for closure — for the mission to be accomplished, lending some ultimate meaning to our loss. more than 1,300 U.S. troops have died in the country.
I never really had time to spend with my dad cause he was always answering the call of duty, for all I could remember he was a nice and generous man but blunt.
